Established in the UK in 1969, Loma Systems® is today one of the leading global suppliers of in-line check and detect inspection systems for the food and pharmaceutical industries. Present in 100 countries around the world, it works alongside brands and manufacturers on a global scale. Its products are uniquely engineered to facilitate compliance with international product safety standards, weight legislation and retailers’ codes of practice, whilst identifying product defects and eliminating contaminants for consistent quality.
Libby White spoke with Toby Kemp, global marketing manager, about the support that goes on behind the scenes for the food and pharmaceutical industry to ensure quality and safety reach the consumer at the end of the process.
Loma®’s leading role
The company holds a crucial role of product inspection, providing peace of mind for consumers, retailers, and manufacturers within the supply chain.
Toby explains, “As a consumer, you will have heard of the retailers and supermarkets that you buy from but you would not necessarily be aware of the huge network of manufacturers and suppliers behind the scenes. The reality is that there is a huge food supply chain, and Loma®’s role is to help these manufacturers ensure safety and quality. We also work alongside retailers and professional bodies to help develop codes of practise, defining the standards that manufacturers must adhere to.”
Loma® prides itself as one of the only companies that supplies a complete line of metal detectors, X-ray inspection, checkweighing and combination systems. Its equipment detects the smallest foreign bodies, ensuring products are free from contaminants such as metal, glass, stones, plastic, and rubber, whilst also dynamically checking products in-line to ensure quality standards are met, such as for weight legislation. Loma®’s checkweighers can check that consumers do not receive underfilled products, whilst also saving companies money by checking for overfilled products.
A challenging act
Codes of practice, standards, and legislation make up a formidable field for Loma® to face. Toby highlights, “There is constant evolution in these topics, and on a global scale little is harmonised. We aim to work with major retailers to help support global manufacturers in complying with the latest standards, which is a challenging feat. Also, our goal is to offer the best lead times and we aim to stay on top of challenges alongside our customers.”
Secondly, Toby underlines that in his experience, inspection solutions are not the first piece of equipment considered when implementing a production line, although they are some of the most important in terms of safety and quality. “It is in fact, usually the last,” he stresses. This entails additional challenges such as space restrictions, and complex product handling. Every factory is different, and Toby underlines that check and detect equipment needs to be considered earlier within the process.
Developing character
Loma® holds over 40 years of experience and expertise. The company was recently present at interpack 2017, showcasing an array of new solutions, such as its next generation LOCK-PH pharmaceutical metal detector.
A focus of Loma® at the moment is its next generation IQ4 metal detector series, which was launched as a highlight on its impressive interpack stand. “This series is designed for future proofing and Loma® is upping the game with this innovation,” Toby comments.
It offers more reliable detection performance, and provides many customer benefits based around reliability, robustness, performance, usability, quality and flexibility. Users can benefit from an improved touch screen, designed for ease-of-use. It can also withstand a wash-down cleaning regime, as standard from Loma Systems®.
Manufacturing processes and industry 4.0 are key topics within the industry at the moment. “Loma® is introducing software for centralised data reporting and management to help monitor multiple lines,” says Toby. TRACS 2 is an advanced data management and reporting tool. Introduced at interpack, it helps plants better understand product inspection performance and trends.
An X-pert cast
“We are witnessing a rise of interest in X-ray inspection within the food industry as a whole, and here at Loma®,” Toby shares. “This is technology we have offered for nearly 20 years now for a range of food products, which also includes a big rise in the convenience food market.”
It is hard to detect metal contaminants in metal packaging such as aluminium trays. Loma®’s X-ray solutions overcome this challenge as they can detect all types of metal (stainless steel, ferrous and non-ferrous) in foil trays and metallised packaging. Loma®’s equipment can also be used to inspect product quality, i.e. with a box of chocolates it can reject a pack if one is found missing, or it can reject multipacks if they are underfilled.
The X5C Compact X-ray inspection system was launched in 2016 by Loma®, “aimed at manufacturers that have not made the journey into X-ray technology yet,” says Toby. It holds a number of benefits, such as its compact size, and easy implementation. A key reason for its success: “This system has a low power consumption. X-ray is traditionally perceived as an expensive investment; however, the benefits of enhanced food safety far outweigh the cost.”
Toby shares that Loma Systems® has just realised its complete X-ray series across the board of packaged goods, processed meats, and bulk and loose flowing products.
Winning technique
Loma® relies on tool-box methodologies designed to augment manufacturing and enhance quality. Toby explains, “We have had a strong focus in this area within the last few years, and have won a number of awards due to this. We will continue to do what we do best, and the awards we have won recently indicate that we are performing to a high standard.” Further emphasising Loma®’s quality and expertise, the company is constantly increasing its production capability in order to keep up with demand.
“We will continue to help protect both brand reputations and consumers,” Toby concludes. “Being part of Loma® has opened up a whole new perspective on what goes on behind the scenes in the food industry in order to bring a product to the supermarket shelf. Food and pharmaceutical products have been through a significant production process and the need for quality and safety is key.”
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